This government is fully committed to supporting students with special educational needs to fulfil their full potential and the Programme for Government makes a number of commitments to deliver on this objective.
The Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) under the Department of Children, Disability and Equality, enables the full inclusion and meaningful participation of children with disabilities/additional needs in the Early Childhood Care & Education Scheme (ECCE) programme. Its goal is to create a more inclusive environment in pre-schools, so all children availing of preschool, regardless of ability, can benefit from quality early learning and care. There has been a significant increase in resources and supports provided to children with additional needs accessing the AIM programme over recent years.
It is important to note that a diagnosis is not required in order to access AIM supports and that while some children require additional supports at preschool level, many will transition into mainstream classes thereafter. This trend has also been noted as students’ progress from primary level to post-primary.
The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is the statutory body responsible for the provision of special education and allocating supports for children and young people with special educational needs. Where the NCSE identifies need for an early intervention class, the class is sanctioned and supports are provided by my department to ensure the school can accommodate the class. Generally, these classes are resourced at a 6:1 student/teacher ratio and two special needs assistants (SNAs) are allocated to each class.
Early intervention classes are available in mainstream and special school settings for children aged 3 -5 years old with a diagnosis of autism. There is also a small number dedicated to children who are deaf/hard of hearing. These classes are intended to provide early support to children before they start school and can aid their transition to junior infants.
The NCSE in collaboration with the Department of Education and Youth may re-designate an early year’s class to a primary age class where there is verified demand for increased special class provision in the locality. Whilst all stakeholders are agreed on the value of early intervention, the NCSE must consider the legislative requirement for children over six to attend school.
The NCSE work closely with the department to ensure we explore all viable options in increasing such provision to meet the local need. In some areas, where students are leaving an early intervention class and have not secured suitable primary specialist provision, the NCSE may re-designate the class. This is done to ensure they can continue with their specialist educational placement at primary level.
Many of the early intervention classes sanctioned to date have been reclassified as the children enrolled reach primary level age. This allows the children to remain in the class at the school they attended for early intervention. However, this it is not always the case, and some classes continue to enrol a new cohort of children yearly.
A list of all mainstream and special schools is available on my department's website on gov.ie. In addition, a list of schools with special classes; broken by location and class designation is available on the NCSE [website (www.ncse.ie/special-classes)]. Details of SNA and special education teacher allocations are also available on the NCSE website.
My department and the NCSE are committed to delivering an education system that is of the highest quality and where every child and young person feels valued and is actively supported and nurtured to reach their full potential.
